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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PR- 207-03
July 21, 2003

MAYOR MICHAEL R. BLOOMBERG HONORS RECIPIENTS OF 2003 NEW YORK CITY NEIGHBORHOOD DEVELOPMENT ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Department of Small Business Services (SBS) Commissioner Robert W. Walsh this evening presented honors to fourteen recipients of the 2003 New York City Neighborhood Development Achievement Awards at a reception held at Gracie Mansion.  The awards, established in honor of the late, former Assistant Commissioner Barbara Wolff, are given to neighborhood organizations that have demonstrated excellence, partnership and creativity in enhancing New York City’s business environment and quality of life.  Landmarks Commission Chair Robert B. Tierney, Vice President of Community Affairs for Citibank Hector Ramirez, and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Con Edison Eugene McGrath also presented awards at this year’s event.  Con Edison underwrote this year’s award ceremony.

“Building great neighborhoods happens by building great partnerships,” said Mayor Bloomberg. “I am delighted to recognize the creative work of these fine organizations who have worked collaboratively with government and small business to increase opportunity and improve the quality of life in neighborhoods throughout our City. Tonight, we celebrate their achievements, both large and small, that contribute to the greatness of New York.”

“When small businesses work together with the community to improve their neighborhoods, the results can be phenomenal,” said SBS Commissioner Walsh. “Today’s award recipients have each shown an exemplary spirit of teamwork and commitment that is a shining example to be replicated. SBS is committed to providing the support and leadership to local groups to make sure that each of our neighborhoods is an excellent place to live and do business.”

New York City’s business improvement districts (BID), local development corporations (LDC) and other local organizations nominated projects in four award categories: Economic Development, Marketing & Promotions, Community Development and Public Space.  Under the leadership of Deputy Commissioner of Neighborhood Development Mark Newhouse, SBS administered the nomination, evaluation and selection process in collaboration with Joe Chan of the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Economic Development and Rebuilding, John Banks of Con Edison, Dr. Mitchell Moss of New York University, and Hector Ramirez of Citibank.

This year’s award recipients are as follows:

Outstanding Achievement Award

The Gibb Mansion – Pratt Area Community Council
The Pratt Area Community Council (PACC) has transformed the Gibb Mansion, an architectural gem at 218 Gates Avenue into a vibrant residential and community center that contributes greatly to the ongoing development of the Clinton Hill and Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhoods.  Built in the 1850s, PACC acquired the building in 2000 with the vision of creating 71 supportive and affordable units of housing for formerly homeless people and people living with HIV/AIDS.  21 units were also set aside for local residents to help ease the high cost of housing in the immediate area.  

Economic Development – Award For Distinction

Downtown Incentives Calculator and Space Finder – Alliance for Downtown New York
The Downtown Incentives Calculator and Space Finder is an effective business attraction and retention tool.  By logging on to www.DowntownNY.com, a business can calculate the savings
accrued when relocating or expanding a business downtown. After incentives are calculated, the Space Finder lists available commercial spaces that meet a company’s unique needs.

Economic Development – Awards Of Merit
 
SoBRO Venture Center – South Bronx Overall Economic Development Corporation
The SoBRO Venture Center is a technology-driven business incubator facility offering affordable office space to small and start-up businesses, and revitalizing an under-developed area in the South Bronx.  The Venture Center provides tenants with a range of services, including high-speed Internet access, printing facilities, as well as legal and accounting services.
    
JFK Corporate Square – Greater Jamaica Development Corporation
JFK Corporate Square is an ambitious plan to create a first-class, highly visible airport-supportive business center around the new AirTrain terminal in Jamaica, Queens. In 2003, the Greater Jamaica Development Corporation secured $21 million in New Market Tax Credits from the U.S. Treasury to support the development of Tower One, the first major development component of the Square.

Promotions And Marketing – Award Of Distinction

Go East! Shopping and Dining Discount Program – Lower East Side BID
Go East! Shopping and Dining Discount Program is the centerpiece of the Lower East Side BID’s successful strategy to promote this neighborhood as one of the City’s leading destination shopping districts. The program includes the participation of over 400 area businesses that are collectively promoted through a brochure and shopping card and print advertising campaign. 
    
Promotions And Marketing – Awards Of Merit

Discover Columbus! Shopping, Dining, Cultural and Historical Extravaganza – Columbus Avenue BID
Discover Columbus! is an event marketing campaign designed to encourage exploration of the historic Columbus Avenue shopping corridor along the Upper West Side of Manhattan.  The campaign cost-effectively pulls together the many amenities of Columbus Avenue promoted effectively through attractive posters and postcards.

Graham Avenue Fiesta – Graham Avenue BID
The Graham Avenue Fiesta is an eight-block street fair that attracts upwards of 50,000 people a year from in and around the Williamsburg and Greenpoint communities.  The event is noteworthy for its “Community Stage” that features musical and theatrical performances by local residents, with an emphasis on celebrating the neighborhoods’ cultural diversity.

Community Development – Award Of Distinction
    
Cypress Hills Homeownership Initiative Project – Cypress Hills LDC
The Cypress Hills Homeownership Initiative Project is an innovative program to mitigate the lack of affordable housing and the numerous vacant or distressed properties in the area.  The project has so far taken seven small one to three family homes and renovated them, providing 14 units of affordable housing to low-income first-time homeowners.  Additionally, workshops are available for new or future homeowners on mortgages, property maintenance and other homeownership issues.

Community Development –Awards Of Merit

Grand Gourmet – The Flavor of Midtown – Grand Central Partnership
Grand Gourmet is an annual event held in Grand Central Station that showcases the culinary talent of more than 30 extraordinary restaurants in the Grand Central neighborhood.  More than just a food-tasting event, Grand Gourmet is a major fund-raiser, contributing over $500,000 to the Grand Central Neighborhood Social Services Corporation since 2000, which assists homeless families in the area.

After School in Lincoln Square @ MLK Jr. High School – Lincoln Square BID
Since 1999, After School in Lincoln Square has helped hundreds of students from nearby Martin Luther King, Jr. High School access the many wonderful resources of the Lincoln Square business community. The program has sought to creatively combine educational, recreational and job-readiness components.  Over 110 students participate daily in its academic, career counseling, recreation, business internship and summer-job offerings. 

Public Space – Award Of Distinction

Stone Street Historic District Reconstruction Project/Lower Manhattan Wireless Network –
The Alliance for Downtown New York

The Downtown Alliance has called upon both the history and innovation of Lower Manhattan in achieving two distinct public space projects. The Stone Street Historic District Reconstruction Project has renovated one of downtown’s last remaining low-scale 19th century streetscapes.  Construction features include a granite block roadbed, bluestone sidewalk flags, and historically contextual streetlights.  The Lower Manhattan Wireless Network provides free, high-speed wireless Internet access in seven different open spaces throughout Lower Manhattan. The project creates a more usable business district by providing the power of Internet connectivity to virtually every downtown space.

Public Space – Awards Of Merit

Street Furniture Design – 34th Street Partnership
34th Street’s custom-designed line of street furniture is a marriage of form and function that contributes to a true sense of identity in the 34th neighborhood. Elements include: lightweight polyethylene tree planters, street-friendly tree fences, and self-illuminating street signs. The result is a line of furniture that conveys a consistent image while supporting superior usability.

Harlem Renaissance Farmer’s Market – Harlem Renaissance Economic Development Corp.
The Harlem Renaissance Farmer’s Market energizes Malcolm X Boulevard between 111th and 112th Streets with Harlem’s first community-sponsored farmer’s market. The market delivers fresh fruits and vegetables to a community underserved by such vendors, and educates shoppers on topics in health and nutrition.





CONTACT:

Edward Skyler / Jennifer Falk   (212) 788-2958

Jake Lynn   (SBS)
(212) 513-6432


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